The Peerless Building is a revered historic treasure for the Ashland community and is currently listed on the National List of Historic Places with the National Park Service. It was built in 1900 by Oscar and Lucinda Ganiard, who built many commercial buildings in Ashland. Not too many people know this, but originally it was a single-story brick building and not the 2-story brick building we know today. It wasn’t until 1904 that the second story was added by the new owner transforming it into lodging for migrant rail workers.

This vernacular “brick front” commercial style building is typical of the once prevalent rooming houses developed to serve the working-class men and women drawn to Ashland in the early years of the 20th century.

It was under the ownership of Sarah Meekly that the building received the name, “Peerless Rooms,” in 1910. A significant element of the building is the sign painted on the side of the building proclaiming “Peerless Rooms” (probably dating from around 1915) with an early “Coca-Cola” advertisement. This is one of Oregon’s best surviving early 20th century murals and is a mecca for those who appreciate advertising history. In 1919, the Peerless building was purchased by Samuel Davies who ran it as a barbershop called “The Mirror Barber” and with his family living upstairs, he also considered it his home and continued to until his death in 1951. .

After the passing of Samuel Davies, his widow, Lora, sold the property to a local who had no intended use for the property, and from here until 1992 it sat virtually vacant and nearly condemned.

In 1992, Crissy Barnett purchased the now derelict building and began a massive 2-year project to restore and renovate the Peerless building to its current glory. In 2021, it was sold to its new owner, Shawn Donnille, who wishes to act as steward and caretaker of one of Ashland’s most curious and intriguing buildings.

To this day, the Peerless building retains all its original brick work, Coca-Cola advertising mural, and shockingly most of the interior still retains most of its original beauty including original doors, hardware, windows, trim, woodwork, staircase, and more. Simply meandering through the halls, one can get a true sense of the architectural and cultural history of this magnificent property.

Once you walk into the Peerless Hotel you will not find it surprising that this building stands as one of the area’s most haunted locations and has been featured on That Oregon Life, Ashland Mystery Festival, Destination Oregon, Walk Ashland, and Travel Southern Oregon. The resident apparition is a playful and harmless child that goes by the name of Amelia who guests say is around the age of 7-9, has light golden hair, and is found wearing her traditional garb from about 1915. She has been with us since the renovations started in the early 1990’s and she may have been here longer; we just don’t have any record from owners prior to that period. She is renowned for her playful nature and her favorite toys include marbles and sterling stemware. In fact, we have hundreds of reports from guests who have found random marbles throughout the hotel along with misplaced silverware. And not too many folks know this, but when we began renovations in the 90’s we removed the original hardwood floors to install duct work under the building. Nothing interesting was excavated or found on the bare dirt ground beneath the hotel floors, with one exception. There we found a pile of neatly placed marbles in a small earthen depression that by all appearances had been there for decades including antique clay marbles! We have those marbles on display in the lobby in the case on the right-hand side as you enter the hotel, and along with the marbles you will find other Amelia related items including what we believe to be younger photos of her and a pair of her shoes which we located within the walls during renovations.

Amelia is a popular local legend that is well known in the Rogue Valley and even our local restaurants have created cocktails in her honor such as “Amelia’s Marbles” “Amelia’s Got A Say” “Amelia is Haunting Me” and more! The Peerless Hotel is popularly booked by ghost hunting enthusiasts who come here from all over the world to track and record her whimsical movements and many stories have been shared online. Simply search for “Amelia” and “Peerless Hotel” to learn more.